Proceedings of Abstracts Engineering and Computer Science Research Conference 2019

© 2019 The Author(s). This is an open-access work distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are credited. For further details please see https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. Note: Keynote: Fluorescence visualisation to evaluate effectiveness of personal protective equipment for infection control is © 2019 Crown copyright and so is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Under this licence users are permitted to copy, publish, distribute and transmit the Information; adapt the Information; exploit the Information commercially and non-commercially for example, by combining it with other Information, or by including it in your own product or application. Where you do any of the above you must acknowledge the source of the Information in your product or application by including or linking to any attribution statement specified by the Information Provider(s) and, where possible, provide a link to this licence: http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/This book is the record of abstracts submitted and accepted for presentation at the Inaugural Engineering and Computer Science Research Conference held 17th April 2019 at the University of Hertfordshire, Hatfield, UK. This conference is a local event aiming at bringing together the research students, staff and eminent external guests to celebrate Engineering and Computer Science Research at the University of Hertfordshire. The ECS Research Conference aims to showcase the broad landscape of research taking place in the School of Engineering and Computer Science. The 2019 conference was articulated around three topical cross-disciplinary themes: Make and Preserve the Future; Connect the People and Cities; and Protect and Care

Genome-wide Analyses Identify KIF5A as a Novel ALS Gene

To identify novel genes associated with ALS, we undertook two lines of investigation. We carried out a genome-wide association study comparing 20,806 ALS cases and 59,804 controls. Independently, we performed a rare variant burden analysis comparing 1,138 index familial ALS cases and 19,494 controls. Through both approaches, we identified kinesin family member 5A (KIF5A) as a novel gene associated with ALS. Interestingly, mutations predominantly in the N-terminal motor domain of KIF5A are causative for two neurodegenerative diseases: hereditary spastic paraplegia (SPG10) and Charcot-Marie-Tooth type 2 (CMT2). In contrast, ALS-associated mutations are primarily located at the C-terminal cargo-binding tail domain and patients harboring loss-of-function mutations displayed an extended survival relative to typical ALS cases. Taken together, these results broaden the phenotype spectrum resulting from mutations in KIF5A and strengthen the role of cytoskeletal defects in the pathogenesis of ALS.Peer reviewe

Association between proportion of milk feeds delivered via bottle at age 4 months and weight at 14 months – the Australian NOURISH trial

Introduction Several mechanisms have been proposed for the relationship between weight gain in infancy and obesity risk. While the link with formula intake and attendant higher protein intake is now well documented, it has been proposed that method of milk delivery may also contribute. While breastfeeding an infant largely has control over the amount of milk consumed, while when bottle feeding, either formula or expressed breastmilk, the care-giver can exert more control. Bottle-feeding practices that are not responsive to a child’s cues of hunger and satiety, may result in overfeeding excess weight gain. The aim of this analysis was to examine the relationship between proportion of milk feeds delivered via bottle (breastmilk, formula or mixed feeding) at age 4 months and weight-for age z-score (WAZ) at 14 months. Methods This is a secondary analysis of longitudinal data from mother-child dyads participating in the Australian NOURISH trial. Baseline assessment occurred when infants were approximately 4 months of age, at which time mothers reported three days of child dietary intake. For those infants who were exclusively milk-fed (breastmilk, formula or mixed feeding) over the three days, the average proportion of number of feeds delivered via a bottle per day was calculated; ranging from 0% for the exclusively breastfed infant fed directly from the breast, to 100% for the infant fed only via bottle. Anthropometry were measured by trained research staff at baseline and at a second assessment at child age 14 months and child WAZ (WHO Standards, 2008) and maternal BMI were derived. Multiple regression was used to determine the relationship between WAZ at 14 months and proportion of feeds delivered via bottle at 4 months of age adjusting for WAZ at baseline, protein intake, maternal BMI and age at child’s birth, and NOURISH trial allocation. Results Three days of dietary intake at 4 months and anthropometric data at 4 and 14 months was available for 284 infants (48% male). Mean proportion of feeds delivered via bottle per day at 4 months of age was 26% (sd= 39, range 0-100). The regression model explained 41% variance in WAZ at 14 months (adj R2=.41, SE=.66). WAZ at 14 months was associated with proportion of feeds delivered via bottle at 4 months of age (ß=.12, p=.01) adjusting for WAZ at 4 months (ß=.62, pConclusion These results add to the growing body of evidence that how an infant is fed - bottle feeding versus directly fed from the breast - may contribute to higher relative weight. Providing mothers with support to bottle feed in a way that is responsive to an infant’s hunger and satiety cues is a potential strategy for obesity prevention that requires further investigation

Evaluation of a quality improvement intervention to reduce anastomotic leak following right colectomy (EAGLE): pragmatic, batched stepped-wedge, cluster-randomized trial in 64 countries

Background Anastomotic leak affects 8 per cent of patients after right colectomy with a 10-fold increased risk of postoperative death. The EAGLE study aimed to develop and test whether an international, standardized quality improvement intervention could reduce anastomotic leaks. Methods The internationally intended protocol, iteratively co-developed by a multistage Delphi process, comprised an online educational module introducing risk stratification, an intraoperative checklist, and harmonized surgical techniques. Clusters (hospital teams) were randomized to one of three arms with varied sequences of intervention/data collection by a derived stepped-wedge batch design (at least 18 hospital teams per batch). Patients were blinded to the study allocation. Low- and middle-income country enrolment was encouraged. The primary outcome (assessed by intention to treat) was anastomotic leak rate, and subgroup analyses by module completion (at least 80 per cent of surgeons, high engagement; less than 50 per cent, low engagement) were preplanned. Results A total 355 hospital teams registered, with 332 from 64 countries (39.2 per cent low and middle income) included in the final analysis. The online modules were completed by half of the surgeons (2143 of 4411). The primary analysis included 3039 of the 3268 patients recruited (206 patients had no anastomosis and 23 were lost to follow-up), with anastomotic leaks arising before and after the intervention in 10.1 and 9.6 per cent respectively (adjusted OR 0.87, 95 per cent c.i. 0.59 to 1.30; P = 0.498). The proportion of surgeons completing the educational modules was an influence: the leak rate decreased from 12.2 per cent (61 of 500) before intervention to 5.1 per cent (24 of 473) after intervention in high-engagement centres (adjusted OR 0.36, 0.20 to 0.64; P < 0.001), but this was not observed in low-engagement hospitals (8.3 per cent (59 of 714) and 13.8 per cent (61 of 443) respectively; adjusted OR 2.09, 1.31 to 3.31). Conclusion Completion of globally available digital training by engaged teams can alter anastomotic leak rates. Registration number: NCT04270721 (http://www.clinicaltrials.gov)